A Dad Prepares for Lost: The Final Chapter

In between engineering, surfing the web, and studying one word continually creeps into my conscience.  Lost...Lost...Lost. I can't escape it. My nerd alert is screaming at full blast, and the violator is none other than me.

Lost is returning to my life on Tuesday.  I am somewhere between free beer and you're the next contestant on the Price is Right excited about the return of my favorite show.  Actually Lost is probably one of my top two favorite TV dramas of all time, along with The Sopranos.

I have admitted here before that I am a science fiction fan. I have even wondered before if Braden will watch Star Wars with Dad in the future. How great a dad would I be to impart the double barrelled coolness of engineering and science fiction to my kid.  Before you call child services know that I don't go to conventions. I don't own costumes. I have never even read a sci-fi book. I just like watching a little science fiction on TV and on the big screen.

Why do I like science fiction? I think it is due to the depth of the stories and worlds created in these works.  It seems much more difficult to create your own world complete with belief systems, lifestyles, wardrobes, and the like than it does to film in New York City.  In the good movies or shows the stories are very thought provoking. That is what draws me in.  The mysteries of time travel or some other intriguing pursuit get my mind working.  Other times it is just great story, but always the story and characters matter.

I don't understand why some people have a hard time suspending belief to follow these type shows. Most shows that are theoretically based in reality are about as familiar to me as space travel.  The lives these movie characters live are as much like my life as Chewbacca's.  It seems that you have to suspend belief to follow 99% of every movie or show anyway. So why not just go a little further for the sake of a better story.

Lost adds the element of mystery as well. The show has developed a loyal following of weirdos that clamor for answers to the endless number of questions the writers leave unanswered.  This year will be the end of the ride.  Will we get all the answers?  Will the bomb reset the whole space time continuum?  Will the survivors be here or there and what year will it be?  How does this whole crazy mess work anyway?

Who knows?  But that is the fun.  I am sure the writers will let us in on the important secrets. Maybe we will get to know more about Jacob or the ageless Richard Alpert.  Maybe we won't.

Regardless of what answers we get, I will miss Lost when it is gone.  So I am preparing for the season opener with the same excitement Bear Grylls gets from jumping off a cliff. I will be prepared just like Lady Gaga was prepared for her trip to the nut house with that outfit at the Grammys. I will be glued to the TV every Tuesday night. Braden may even have to learn to entertain himself for an hour or two.  (Just kidding. We have a DVR, otherwise known as mankind's greatest achievement.)

If my posts seem a little mysterious for the next several Wednesdays, now you know why.

Lost Premiere Event, video

Today marks the return of my favorite TV show. Jack, Kate, Sawyer, Locke, Hurley and all the gang are flying back into our living rooms tonight for the season premiere of Lost. In their honor I am going to take a break from baby talk to share a few thoughts about the show. Last season ended with the Oceanic Six going home. This led to one of my favorite characters on the show....Bearded, pill popping, crazy Jack. He is much more entertaining than in control, take charge, leader Jack. Bearded Jack is running around telling everyone they have to go back to the island with a stoned look on his face. In one of my favorite bearded Jack moments he pulled up to see Jeremy Bentham in the funeral parlor totally rocking out on his jeep stereo. I suppose he will get his act together this season to lead the return to the island.

Lost has more unanswered questions than any show I have ever seen. Each episode has more questions than answers. The fantasy land they have created is rife with mystery and science fiction. The show also does a good job of mixing past, present, and lately future to round out the stories. As you go along you learn more about the characters and their lives. After learning about the characters pasts the show starts to reveal their future creating a large void in time where much of the action now takes place. Each show puts another piece of the puzzle in place. It's a thought provoking journey.

We know that bad things are supposed to happen because the Oceanic 6 left. We know that Claire is not supposed to raise her baby and she even appeared to Kate in a dream telling her not to bring him back to the island. We know that Locke and Ben, the two most in touch with the island, are trying to get everyone to come back. At least Ben is still trying. We also know that Jack's dead father is running around talking to folks and Ben and Widmore have some unfinished business.

I've read that the creators know exactly how the story will end. I cannot even imagine what will happen. There is so much left unanswered about that crazy island, but you can count me in for every episode left of the ride. I am ready to go with crazy Jack back to the island myself even if some of his friends are not.